Product Description

The true story of a mischievous abandoned puppy who wins the hearts of a group of battle-hardened Marines. It will melt your heart.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20448 in Books
• Published on: 2007-04-02
• Binding: Hardcover
• 240 pages

Synopsis
When Marines enter an abandoned house in Fallujah, Iraq, and hear a suspicious noise, they clench their weapons, edge around a corner, and prepare to open fire. What they find during the US-led attack on the 'most dangerous city on Earth', however, is not an insurgent bent on revenge, but a tiny puppy left behind when most of the city's population fled before the bombing. Despite military law that forbids the keeping of pets, the Marines de-flea the pup with kerosene, de-worm him with chewing tobacco, and fill him up on Meals Ready to Eat. Thus begins the dramatic rescue attempt of a dog named Lava and Lava's rescue of at least one Marine, Lieutenant Colonel Jay Kopelman, from the emotional ravages of war. From hardened Marines to wartime journalists to endangered Iraqi citizens, "From Baghdad, With Love" tells an unforgettable story of an unlikely band of heroes who learn unexpected lessons about life, death, and war from a mangy flea-ridden refugee.

From the Publisher
The true story of a mischievous abandoned puppy who wins the hearts of a group of battle-hardened Marines. It will melt your heart.

From the Inside Flap
When Marines enter an abandoned house in Fallujah, Iraq, and hear a suspicious noise, they clench their weapons, edge around a corner, and prepare to open fire.

What they find during the US-led attack on the ‘most dangerous city on Earth’, however, is not an insurgent bent on revenge, but a tiny puppy left behind when most of the city’s population fled before the bombing. Despite military law that forbids the keeping of pets, the Marines de-flea the pup with kerosene, de-worm him with chewing tobacco, and fill him up on Meals Ready to Eat. Thus begins the dramatic rescue attempt of a dog named Lava and Lava’s rescue of at least one Marine, Lieutenant Colonel Jay Kopelman, from the emotional ravages of war.

From hardened Marines to war reporters to endangered Iraqi citizens, From Baghdad, With Love tells an unforgettable story of an unlikely band of heroes who learn unexpected lessons about life, death and war from a mangy flea-ridden refugee.

‘One of a handful of heart-warming tales to emerge from the war in Iraq.’ USA Today

Customer Reviews

Absolutely Fantastic - A Must-Read Book Without A Doubt.
I have just finished reading this book and it is absolutely fantastic. It tells the heart-warming story of how a puppy saved so many people's sanity in war-torn Iraq, and how a marine (and all those who helped him) saved the puppy in return. The author (the marine himself) gives a frank and honest account of how he unashamedly befriended this puppy (Lava) and how Lava reminded him of his own humanity in such awful circumstances. Yes, there is description of life in Iraq for the troops, civilians and reporters, and this is totally necessary to the story. Without this, we could not understand the terrible danger Lava, and all those who help to save him are in; nor could we understand how much the marine needs Lava to help him through. Also, we are given an account of the terrible effect the war is having on animals in Iraq, something which is very important and rarely touched upon. It also shows just how much Lava is loved that all these people risk so much to save him. A fascinating; honest and brave account of true friendship, even in the face of adversity. A fantastic book, I cannot reccommend it highly enough.

Bless Him! How cute?!
This was a beautiful book to read. Admittedly I mainly brought it because the front covers picture grabbed me, but I enjoyed it completely. Some bits do tend to drone on, especially towards the middle of the book. But hang in there because it gets better and the fights that have to be done to rescue a puppy makes you realise that the world does still have some nice people in it. A brilliant book, and well worth every penny. The pictures in the middle are one of the best bits! But there are some very funny bits in there too. Read the bit about the ready meals!

A book about war with some bits about a puppy in it
I wanted to love this book but it's a bit of a mongrel. I read a synopsis of it in the daily papers and, being a dog-lover, thought I must get it immediately. Turns out the best bits were summarised in the paper! I thought there would be more written about the dog in the book and there wasn't really that much. It is very much a book about warfare (not to dismiss that story in itself) with odd bits about the puppy as and when. To tell the truth I kinda skip-read most of it. The story is a good one but the book wasn't quite what I was expecting. Buy it anyway. You'll probably enjoy it.